Aloha Hawaii !!

To date, the MV Explorer has called at 14 different ports in 11 countries. We have one more stop to go and we will have circumnavigated the globe. Unbelievable!

Having docked in Honolulu we joined a wonderful bus tour around the island. (Hawaii is the most isolated land mass on the planet being 2,500 miles from any other land) Visited Diamond Head Crater where one gets a spectacular view of all the many beaches. Saw two hump-back whales
off the coastline of Makapuu Point. Stopped off at a rain forest at the top of Mt. Tantalus. Saw where Obama was born and where he graduated. Also saw where some of the very wealthy Americans have second homes on the island. Frangipani trees were everywhere. Many of the Hawaiian Leis are made from these wonderfully scented flowers. Glorious weather with the luxury of trade winds to cool things down. In the afternoon we took the local bus to Pearl Harbor where we were initially shown a very interesting film telling the story of the politics, the people and the attack on Pearl Harbor.We then took a short boat ride over to the Memorial. A visit to the USS Arizona Memorial is a very solemn and sobering experience, even for those who were not alive when the attack occurred (Me!). One is literally standing over a grave site where 1177 men lost their lives on December 7th 1941. 2390 men, women and children were killed - half of whom were on board the USS Arizona. This was the greatest loss of life in a single day by any ship in the US naval history. There are more than 900 men still entombed in the hull of the Arizona. One can still see several pieces of debris in the sea from the Arizona. The USS Arizona held approximately 1.5 million gallons of bunker oil. The ship apparently burned for 2½ days and currently the ship still leaks 2 quarts of oil each day. It was all quite eerie to see.

On a lighter note, the next day we spent on the beach at Waikiki. The boardwalk is full of very expensive shops and hotels. The beach,although quite narrow, has lovely white sands, crystal clear aquamarine color sea and is overlooked by Diamond Head Crater.We spent the whole day swimming in the sea, people watching, and enjoying seeing the many skillful surfers. We were amused to see one surfer who took his dog on the board with him - at one stage the surfer fell but the dog stayed on the board. Had a wonderful lunch at the Moana Hotel overlooking the ocean.This hotel was built in the late 19th century as the first hotel in Waikiki. In the center of the Hotel's courtyard there's an enormous Banyan tree. This tree was apparently seven feet tall when planted back in 1904 and now stands 75 feet high and spans 150 feet across the courtyard. There were huge bougainvillea bushes everywhere as well as other tropical plants.

We found the Hawaiian people very friendly with an interesting mix of cultures. Although the written Hawaiian language is based on English letters, there are only 8 consonants and five vowels. Honolulu has an excellent bus service and it's very cheap and easy to get around. Because we only had a 2-day stay in Hawaii we weren't able to get to see Kileaua Volcano on Hawaii's Big Island which has the world's most active volcano. We will have to be content with watching it on the TV Travel Channel.

Gus finished his lectures today and is now working on final exams. So this amazing voyage is nearing the end. Last night with had another "dark night" which is when all the ship's exterior lights are turned off so one gets a spectacular view of the thousands of stars. We arrive in Guatemala on Tuesday and will spend a night in Antigua which apparently is well worth a visit. We leave Guatemala on Thursday and travel through the Panama Canal onto Fort Lauderdale.





















Pearl Harbor